There are times in our lives when we’re concerned about some condition around us, but we get caught up with more pressing matters and the concern fades for a while. And then, one day, as the wheel turns, something comes along to bring the condition front and centre; we become galvanized.
In recent months, for instance, on a few occasions I have had the thought that we should be doing more to hold up pivotal people across the board in our society, what I call “our stalwart ones,” both for letting them know they’re appreciated and for disseminating their stories for the country at large to inform our history. There was the parallel thought to consider doing something about it, but that was mostly at the back of my mind. And then, about a week ago, I was in St George’s Cathedral, at a memorial for one such stalwart, the late Hugh Cholmondeley, and the concern came front and centre as I was getting ready to deliver my small tribute to the memory of this special man. It had not been in my mind to say it, but I actually became angry at the thought that here we were again, in a brief homage to a stalwart, but only after he had left us.Miles Fitzpatrick had alluded to the same point in his tribute, and it had stirred me.
And so I took a moment before my turn to say that we have to start uplifting these special people; that we are letting them pass generally unheralded. We are committing this sin all the time. We are not taking enough notice of our unique sons and daughters. They pass away; we come to a church service for them; there is
